Lion shot dead – and many are dismayed that he was not darted, relocated
The lion had managed to evade experienced hunters for months
The rogue male lion that led hunters on a merry three month chase has been shot dead.
Dundee SAPS spokesperson Captain Mbense told the Courier the lion was shot dead by a farmer on Cotswold farm on the Dundee Vryheid road.
The lion had left behind evidence of its kills on farms in the area since he was first spotted by a surveillance camera on a farm on the Nquthu road in February. He targeted mainly calves.
His latest kill was last weekend when the remains of a calf were found on a farm outside Dundee.
Captain Mbense said details of how the lion was spotted and shot were still being gathered.
The shooting of the lion has elicited a wave of dismay on the Courier’s Facebook page with many asking why hunters could not simply dart the lion and relocate the animal to a park.
However, professional hunters who spoke to the Courier said to relocate a rogue male lion would have been ‘incredibly difficult and would have condemned the lion to a whole lot of fresh trouble’.
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